Threat Of Obamacare Repeal Leaves Community Health Centers In Limbo

Health InsuranceFebruary 23, 2017Comments Off on Threat Of Obamacare Repeal Leaves Community Health Centers In Limbo

The Federico F. Peña Southwest Family Health Center opened in 2016 to serve a low-income community in Denver. The clinic and its parent system, Denver Health, have benefited financially from the Affordable Care Act and its expansion of Medicaid.

John Daley / Colorado Public Radio

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John Daley / Colorado Public Radio

The Federico F. Peña Southwest Family Health Center opened in 2016 to serve a low-income community in Denver. The clinic and its parent system, Denver Health, have benefited financially from the Affordable Care Act and its expansion of Medicaid.

John Daley / Colorado Public Radio

Treating people for free or for very little money has been the role of community health centers across the U.S. for decades. In 2015, 1 in 12 Americans sought care at one of these clinics; nearly 6 in 10 were women, and hundreds of thousands were veterans.

The community clinics — now roughly 1,300-strong — have also expanded in recent years to serve people who gained insurance under the Affordable Care Act. In 2015, community health centers